Reviens a Moi
by Mochytea
Summary: XANA is defeated. The factory is destroyed. William is free, Jeremy is broken, and the Lyoko warriors are dead. Or are they? Five years later, Jeremy discovers that there's so much more to Lyoko than meets the eye.
1. Newspaper Headlines

The dorm room was rather small for the kind of college he went to. It consisted of a simple bed, a stable wooden desk, two chairs, and a dresser, all pushed against the dull beige walls. On the desk lay a newspaper, worn and yellowed by the stain of time, with the pages curling and tearing slightly at the edges. Normally, he would clean up a mess like this one, scanning the pages to preserve its content and then laminating them to prevent it from giving in to decay. However, he could not do it for this one. In fact, he could barely touch it at all. The headline's bold, block letters stayed in his sight even after he closed his eyes, being able to see clearly what the words said:

**OLD FACTORY NEAR KADIC ACADEMY EXPLODES OF UNKNOWN REASONS: FOUR STUDENTS PRESUMED DEAD AND TWO STUDENTS SEVERLY INJURED**

Tears formed and threatened to spill over when Jeremy Belfois opened his eyes once more. He blinked and a single tear rolled down his thin cheek, cutting a damp path on his face. He could clearly remember what had happened that fateful day, ten years ago:

_Jeremy was frustrated. Upset. Those words didn't even convey the emotions he was feeling. Franz Hopper had given his life to provide energy to run the program that would destroy XANA, the evil supercomputer that was aiming take over the world. His heart panged as he heard Aelita's cries when her father died. What made it worse was that the energy from Hopper _still wasn't enough._ Yumi, Odd, and Ulrich ran to her side as she slid to the ground, sorrow tearing at the young, pink-haired girl. Eventually they became aware of the Mantas shooting their red lasers at the team, and Ulrich and Yumi began to deflect their shots._

"_Jeremy! Why isn't the program running?" Yumi called out._

"_It's ready to be run, but there just isn't enough energy! We need just, at the most, five more Franz Hoppers in order for the program to run successfully! We're one tiny step away from destroying XANA but…but…" Jeremy's voice trailed off in that inexplicable emotion that ran hot through his veins._

"_More Franz Hoppers, huh," mused Odd. "Hey Jeremy, would it be possible if _we_ happened to give our energy?" At this, the others temporarily looked back at the cat-like teen. Through their unbreakable bonds, they were able to convey one message to each other, unknown to Jeremy._

"_Well, if you guys did what Hopper did I suppose it would work…after all, you four have more energy than Franz Hopper."_

"_That settles it then!" chirped Odd, as if he was simply scheduling another date with one of his many girlfriends. In response, Yumi, Ulrich, and Aelita stood up, tears in their eyes and weapons dropped. Groans of pain were shared by the four Lyoko warriors as lasers struck their bodies over and over again._

"_Wait, guys, what are you doing? You're losing life points by the second! If this keeps up, you're all going to be devirtualized and we'll have no hope of beating XANA!"_

"_That's the point, Jeremy! We're just doing what Franz Hopper did—no, we're finishing his work for him," answered Ulrich with a grunt._

_Jeremy was speechless. His hands dropped to his sides as he began to process the strategy of his best friends. In order to defeat XANA and ultimately save the world, Franz Hopper had deliberately died to do so. His energy was not enough, however, and his friends began to fuel the program to be run. William, standing close to Jeremy, listened and reacted similarly. Grabbing Jeremy's mike, he yelled at the four warriors, "Are you guys INSANE? If you do that, you're all going to die like Franz Hopper did! He sacrificed himself to not only protect the world, but also all four of you! If you guys die, then his efforts..." His voice trailed off as Odd was destroyed first._

"_NO! ODD!" cried Jeremy. Tears flowed openly from his eyes as Odd's icon vanished. Yumi was the next to go, trigging William's own rivers of tears. With a "c'ya" Ulrich disappeared as well._

_Aelita was still holding out on the battlefield. Despite her pain she managed to restart the program with the touch of her right hand, the hand that had foiled XANA's plans so many times. _

"_A-aelita…don't leave me…please," wailed Jeremy. _

_Aelita smiled weakly as her body began to fade. "Be strong for me, Jeremy…Protect the new world we'll create with your sharp mind and love of technology…Never stop what you loved doing even before I met you. You must promise me that you won't break down from this." Jeremy nodded so hard his microphone almost flew off. "Use your talents to shape the new world and don't mourn. I…I love you, Jeremy. And we will all be in your and William's hearts." She managed a small laugh. "Good-bye, Jeremy…Be well, and never forget us…" And with those words her icon blinked four, five, six times before disappearing entirely._

_Jeremy was crushed and his vision was blurred from his tears. He didn't want to move. Hell, he didn't want to do anything. Within the span of a minute and a half he had lost all of his closest friends, the only friends he had since he entered Kadic Academy. He dimly heard William yelling about the anti-XANA program before remembering what his friends had died for. With all of his remaining strength he pushed the 'enter' key that had been pressed along with Aelita's life-saving hand. His own hands trembled as the Replikas vanished one by one just as huge explosions sounded from the scanner and supercomputer rooms. The factory shook as if struck by an earthquake and William managed to drag Jeremy all the way to the entrance before it caved in almost on top of them._

_The next thing Jeremy saw was the depressing white hospital walls. He was somewhat aware of his parents anxiously talking to him, and of William's own parents on the other side of the room. Just outside the open door he could hear sobs and wailing from his dead friends' families. All except for Aelita, but he cried for her himself as a friend. As family._

Suddenly, Jeremy turned around abruptly and sat down on his bed. It had been ten years since that incident, and he was now a twenty-four year old college student. In order to get his mind off what had happened, he applied to and entered one of the most difficult schools of technology in France. He lost himself in more modern technology and refused to take part in robot competitions and discussions and inventions of future technology. The pain was too much for him to bear. Whenever he saw something—a simple picture or a small model—of a supercomputer, a robot, anything of the like, he saw the faces of his best friends and collapsed on the spot. He stuck himself in the past and refused to look towards the future, only being supported by William, who remained his last friend and link to Lyoko.

William had always been there for Jeremy and even attended a nearby college in order to keep an eye on him. Ever since the incident with the zombies, William found himself more and more protective of others, including Jeremy. Some days the two of them would sit at a small café and just talk about the four—Aelita, Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi—and about Lyoko. They spoke of the factory and its supercomputer, scanners—all the equipment to get to Lyoko, although they presumed it was all crushed beyond repair and buried. They often pondered about the virtual world and on Jeremy's better days, about whether the Lyoko warriors truly died or maybe just stuck in virtual limbo. These discussions left Jeremy feeling extremely uncomfortable and often ended with him hurrying back to his dorm to study 17th century gunnery.

Aelita's last words were scribbled on a piece of notebook paper which he constantly looked back at, and internally beat himself up for not completely abiding by what she said. By deliberately ignoring the future and not contributing to make it a better technological experience for the rest of the world than themselves he was flat-out going against her. But he was not strong enough, he often told himself. Then he would inwardly punch himself because that was the first thing Aelita had told him. To be strong.

At that moment, Jeremy remembered the project he had started not that long ago. If he was going to use his intelligence, he might as well use for _them_. _They might not be really gone_, Jeremy thought excitedly. _They might just be trapped, like I was when I first tried going there. _He was afraid, that much was true. If this didn't work, he would become even more depressed with the fact that he failed and that his friends were really, truly gone. But he would never know until he tried that. He had to try running that certain program. With a grunt, Jeremy grabbed his coat and rushed out the door, dialing William's number.

"'Sup?"

"William, I want you to meet me at my lab. There's something I want to show you."

William seemed perplexed, but answered, "Sure, I'll be there in a sec."

Within minutes William ran into the lab, his dark blue hair tousled by the wind.

"What is it?" he asked as he walked over to Jeremy, who had sat down at one of the many white computers in the large, unlit room. Science tables were scattered around, with beakers sitting delicately on their black surfaces. Next to him was a strange contraption consisting of a large box marked with technological symbols and two sci-fi-looking helmets attached to it with complicated, colored wires.

Jeremy began to speak. "After the factory got destroyed, I started creating and programming these helmets when I got into this college. After a couple of weeks I abandoned the project, but I was already almost finished."

"And? What's it got to do with me?"

At this moment Jeremy turned around in his swivel chair. His eyes, once glazed from the incident, was now bright and clear and staring fiercely back at William from behind his dark-framed glasses.

"How would you like…to go back to Lyoko?"

* * *

_Well, if that wasn't crap I don't know what is anymore._

_I just thought of this after watching some random _Code Lyoko_ episodes and I just had to write it down, although it's not what I wanted it to be. Also, I think I made William too...motherly, I guess, but I promise he'll be somewhat more William-ish, as William-ish as I can write him, as the story goes on. If it goes on. _

_At any rate, hope you liked it to some extent._

_~Wings~ flying off._


	2. Revirtualization

_At this moment Jeremy turned around in his swivel chair. His eyes, once glazed from the incident, was now bright and clear and staring fiercely back at William from behind his dark-framed glasses._

"_How would you like…to go back to Lyoko?"_

_

* * *

_

An expression of complete surprise and disbelief flitted across William's face before he stumbled back a few steps, holding his hands up in a surrendering gesture.

"L-Lyoko?" he exclaimed. "But I thought Lyoko was—"

"Not destroyed," finished Jeremy. He adjusted his glasses on his nose and continued to speak. "Like I said before, I was researching the whole incident at the factory, and I found that the conclusion we had drawn was not completely true. The factories, the scanners, the supercomputer…all of them were destroyed, yes, but the actual virtual world wasn't. What was gone was simply the link from our world to Lyoko. So, Lyoko is still out there." He sighed at William's perplexed expression.

"Think about it this way, William," he said, pulling out a scrap of paper and a pencil nub. "Here's our world and Lyoko." He drew two small circles on either end of the paper, labeling them 'E' and 'L'. "Ever since its conception, Lyoko and Earth existed side by side, but never interacting—like a parallel universe. What we had was the supercomputer and the scanners, which connected Earth and Lyoko." He sketched a box and three cylinders, and then lines on either side from them to the circles. Then, he crossed them out. "We lost those after the factory collapsed. And with XANA, Lyoko was destroyed. Or so we thought.

"Actually, it was just XANA that had been destroyed, but Lyoko still survived and is still out there. Lyoko and Earth just went back to being anti-social neighbors, I guess we could say." William chuckled and Jeremy managed a small smile, which became rare after the incident. However, the grin vanished quickly as Jeremy continued to speak. "But now, I was able to find some data on my old laptop, which I was able to transfer to this computer here. Now, by taking that information, I was able to create a program not unlike Franz Hopper's when he had first created Lyoko. I began to develop that program, stretching and adjusting it to the characteristics of Lyoko, like the way a miner digs at a tunnel—you have to be careful not to make the tunnel collapse before it's finished. And now, I've finally broken through to the light at the other end of that tunnel—Lyoko. It's there. We can get there, and through that, to Odd and Ulrich and Yumi and…Aelita." Tears overflowed Jeremy's eyes again, and he suddenly hunched up, trembling in his seat. Startled, William began to throw an arm around him, but then he straightened up quickly and gave him that same, strong expression he had gotten before.

"Here—"Jeremy gestured to the helmets—"are our links. Instead of rematerializing your whole body, these just take your consciousness to Lyoko. So you'll be here, out like a light, but you'll still be in Lyoko at the same time."

"But wouldn't the situation be different, then, if it's just your mind going to Lyoko?" asked William, dubiously looking at the helmets. Curly, colorful wires connected them to the strange box, and a few green lights blinked sleepily on the rims. In front of the helmet was a letter 'E'; on the back was a letter 'L', and the two letters were connected by a thin strip of metal.

"Not necessarily. Just because it's not your body going to Lyoko doesn't mean you're any different from when you first got virtualized. However, you're not going to be as strong as you would be if your whole body did go to Lyoko. Some of the easier monsters will be harder to fight. But thanks to a character program I created, with every monster you destroy, your attack, special attack, defense, special defense, and speed points will increase."

"Like a video game," William mused with a small smile.

"Yes, but don't treat it like one! Remember the first time you did; that cost you a whole year of your life."

Immediately William's expression darkened as he remembered the days when he was possessed by XANA on his first day in Lyoko. "That was terrifying," he murmured. "You have no idea."

"I know," answered Jeremy, "but are you going to try it? You don't have to if you don't want to; I know the risks are great and all—"

"Are you kidding me?" cried William. "Our friends are stuck in there if they're not really gone, and this will also be a chance to redeem myself! I learn from my mistakes, Jeremy, and I'm not going to fall for the same trap twice. I'll go. Don't worry; I'll bring them back myself."

Jeremy smiled again, bigger than the last. "Alright, William, you know what to do. I'll be sending you to the ice sector."

With those words, the dark-haired man placed the helmet on his head and sat on the hard white floor. The green lights flared and flashed quickly, and the symbols on the box began to glow gold, as well as the 'E' on the helmet. Jeremy placed a small microphone in his ear.

"Transfer: William."

William's old icon popped up on the computer screen. A wave of nostalgia hit Jeremy as he clicked on the card.

"Scanner: William."

The helmet began to glow even brighter, and a low humming noise emitted from the box. William's expression stiffened slightly.

"Virtualization!"

Slowly, the lights began to fade, resuming the same dull glow it had before. The glow in the 'E' vanished, and the 'L' began to glow instead. As he watched William's face relax, he became worried. _Was this supposed to happen? Is he in Lyoko? Is he alright? Is my theory correct?_ Time passed; sweat appeared on his brow as he waited. _No! I…I killed him! He's gone, like the others! The others…_

"William! William, are you there? Are you alright? Can you hear me? William, answer me!" he cried into the microphone.

A few more painful seconds lapsed, and then—

"For God's sake, Jeremy, not so loud!"

As William slowly virtualized on Lyoko, he looked around him with amazement etched onto his 3D face. Huge glaciers rose out of the icy ground, and a small waterfall trickled into a lake not too far away. Then he fell from the sky and did a face plant.

"Ow," he muttered, dusting himself off as he stood up. Despite the ten-year difference, William's appearance didn't change, except for the fact that he was ten years older and looked like it in Lyoko. His costume was still the same, although it was the original version, not the XANA-customized edition. Beside him lay his broadsword, which he picked up and slashed at the air, and he smiled as light from an unseen source glinted off the cool silver metal of the blade. William reveled in the virtual world, where he felt he could just stay and live for the rest of his life—

"William! William, are you there? Are you alright? Can you hear me? William, answer me!"

Jeremy's anxious voice echoed around the bluish-white surroundings and blasted in his virtual head. Wincing, he called back, "For God' sake, Jeremy, not so loud!"

He heard an immense sigh of relief. "So it worked. It really worked. How's it back in Lyoko?"

"Same as usual," he replied happily. "But now what?"

"Kankrelats at two o' clock!" called Jeremy. William whirled around and spotted three tiny creatures scurrying up towards him. Glowing red laser beams appeared and began to shoot at his feet. One caught him on the toe and he yelped in pain.

"Be careful, William! You're weaker than normal and the monsters had gotten stronger!"

"Nothing I can't handle!" answered William confidently. He leapt forward at the monsters, yelling a battle cry and swinging his blade. To his surprised, all three of them dodged and started firing their lasers again. He managed to catch several of them on his sword and ran back, taking shelter behind a large icy rock.

"William, what's wrong?"

"You're right, Jeremy, I am a lot weaker now. I can't even hit them!" His words were cut off as one of the Kankrelats darted to the side of the rock and discovered him, continuously shooting. William held up his blade and winced at the impact of the lasers, and then hid behind another rock. "My athletic abilities are the same as they were on Earth!"

Meanwhile, Jeremy was overseeing the battle when he noticed something strange about William's weapon.

"You know, the Warriors all had special side abilities when they came to Lyoko; Yumi had telekinesis, Odd was able to predict the future sometimes, Ulrich had Super Speed and Triplicate, and Aelita had synthesization. Do you know yours?"

"Well I had smoke manipulation, but that was under XANA's influence. I don't know about now, when I'm free; why?"

"William, try gathering the energy from the lasers you caught in your blade."

William glanced at his sword. "And how the hell do I do that?"

"Just hold onto the hilt and concentrate!"

He grasped the sword and closed his eyes, feeling slightly stupid in the process. As he focused, he suddenly saw the eye of XANA in his mind's eye, the same symbol that had terrified him on his last visit to Lyoko. In alarm he recklessly slashed the sword at whatever was in front of him, which were the same rock and the three Kankrelats. Immediately, pure, dark blue energy was released from the metal and destroyed what was in its path. The ground shook as the rock and the Kankrelats vanished, and the Eye vanished. Shakily, he opened his eyes. "What just happened, Jeremy?"

Jeremy smiled broadly. "You just discovered your new ability!"

* * *

"If XANA had been the one who sent the monsters, who could have sent those Kankrelats?" asked William as he subconsciously kneaded the red and white checkered tablecloth at his and Jeremy's favorite café.

"I don't know," answered Jeremy. "That means that there's another enemy, bigger than XANA, perhaps. At any rate, there's a new boss out there, but why hasn't he attacked the real world?"

"No clue," said William. As he slowly began to unwind the tablecloth by picking at a frayed spot, he remarked, "I'm stronger now since I beat those Kankrelats, so I have a higher chance at survival in that world, but things would go so much better if I had a companion with me in there."

"I know, William, but you're going to have to cope with it for a while. I don't know anyone who should take this responsibility. And I don't want to bring more people into this; it's dangerous and could easily disrupt their lives," Jeremy answered as he sipped steaming coffee and placed it on the table. A soft breeze blew the scent towards William, who wrinkled his nose at the bitter smell of the hot drink.

"Maybe we can ask one of your professors or colleagues at your school, then. They'd be smart enough to help you work this out—"

"No!" exclaimed Jeremy. A few people turned and glanced at the two men in alarm, and Jeremy lowered his voice in embarrassment. "If we bring one of _them _to Lyoko, they'll be so amazed they'll run off and share the information to the whole scientific world, and they'll want to investigate that whole place. Soon, we'll never be able to go back and any chance of rescuing our friends will be squashed by a Kolossal. Besides, they'd never have been able to do what you did back there; they're weak and fearful of anything besides their books and chemicals."

William chuckled at the Lyoko reference but agreed. "We'll need someone we'll really know, then, someone who could understand our situation and have the same drive to save our friends."

Jeremy nodded. "But who? Parents wouldn't do; too busy, realistic, and old for Lyoko."

William's eyes suddenly widened. "How about their siblings?"

* * *

Lily Della Robbia was fast asleep in bed when her older sister barged into her room.

"Lily, get up now! It's already two o'clock in the afternoon and you're _still_ asleep? You have homework to do; wake up!"

A low grunt was heard from under the bunched up covers in response.

"For God's sake, Lily! Just go and waste the day, then!" In a huff, her sister slammed the door behind her. As soon as she left, Lily sat up straight in bed, the blankets tumbling off of her. Her long blond hair was tangled into something resembling a bird's nest, which she tried to run her fingers through. With a sigh, she got up and grabbed her hairbrush, ran it under some water from her sink, and began to force it through her messy locks.

After several long minutes, she finally dressed herself in slender purple jeans, a fitted white t-shirt with a picture of her cat, and a short pink and purple jacket on top. She pinned back her hair with a purple flower clip and and tied the rest into a tall pointed ponytail. Finally, she slipped on a pair of (predictably) purple shoes and left the comforts of her mess of a room and headed down to the kitchen.

A tear formed in Mrs. Della Robbia's eye as she saw her youngest daughter sit down at the table. Quickly, she turned her head, but Lily caught that tiny globe of moisture before it vanished behind her mother's sleeve. She sighed.

"Mom, please."

Mrs. Della Robbia sniffled. "I'm sorry, Lily dear. I know you're not him, but you look so much like your brother Odd when he was your age. And then there was that accident at the factory he used to play in…oh, Odd!" She began to cry and Lily jumped up to save the bacon from burning.

Her mother's breakdowns were common in her daily life. Lily was naturally not very close to her because every time her mother saw her, she would start crying about her supposedly dead brother. Out of her four sisters, she was the only one who inherited the pale traits of her father and with him, her brother. Everyone else in the family had thick dark hair and slightly darker skin.

And her brother—Lily was only five when he died, so she didn't remember too much about him. All she recalled was a blurry, laughing face with peaked hair and a peculiar purple spot in the middle. She could remember a small, bouncing dog named after some fruit—Orange, Apple, Kiwi, something—that had quietly died not too long after it realized that its beloved owner was not coming back. And she remembered being withdrawn from Kadic Academy and transferred to a different school close to home, and being strictly told to come straight home after class.

Lily finished cooking the bacon and set it on the table, where her mother had been reduced to a hiccupping, sobbing mess. "I'm going out to tour that science college I told you about. It's scheduled for today, so I'll be back by around seven or so."

"But Lily, what if something happens to you out there? What if there's an accident? Then I'll lose you, too!"

"Mom, I'll be fine. You can't keep me here forever, anyway; I'm planning on going to college so I can get a life! Now bye!" Lily stormed out the door, already in a bad mood.

* * *

Lily took a train to get to the college's town, which was ten minutes from her home. As she walked down the street to the campus, she passed several small shops; one of them was a fairly populated café where she decided to stop and buy a drink. After purchasing a lemonade, she noticed two young men in the corner of the café talking animatedly and recognized them.

"Mr. Belfois and Mr. Dunbar! I didn't expect seeing you here!" she called politely as she made her way through the crowd to their table. Jeremy and William looked up in surprise.

"Hi, Lily," said Jeremy with a smile. "And just call us by our first names; it's not like we're strangers or anything." William nodded.

"Okay then, Jeremy and William," she answered.

"So what brings you here?" asked William as she joined their table, fiddling with the straw of her lemonade.

"I came to tour Jeremy's college today," Lily answered. "My mom had another fit when I was leaving: you know how she is with me and my brother Odd, she freaks out all the time…Oh, I'm so sorry!" For Jeremy and William stiffened up when she mentioned their best friend's name.

"It's…It's okay, Lily. We were just a little startled, that's all," said William quickly. Then he bit his lip and looked down with a strange expression on his face. Was it guilt? Was he uncomfortable? Lily tilted her head at the dark-haired man and asked, "Um…William? Is there something you want to ask me?"

He glanced at Jeremy sheepishly, who gave a short nod. "Um…do you like your lifestyle now?"

Lily laughed awkwardly. "Well, that's a weird question, but not really. It's too boring since my mom never lets me do anything outside of the house."

William's expression lightened up slightly. "Do you like video games?"

"Hell yeah!"

"One last question: What do you think about helping us save your brother?"

"My brother?" exclaimed Lily. "But how? Is he alive?"

Jeremy glanced around. "This isn't a good place to talk. Let's go to my lab and I'll explain everything there."

"Are you sure that's okay?" asked William worriedly.

"Yeah. Let's go now." Lily, still bewildered, left her lemonade on the table as she followed the two college students out of the café. _What am I getting myself into?_ she thought to herself.

_Oh look; it's a chapter. They're pretty rare around here…does it bite? O_O_

_The story feels a bit weak at the end…review if you want to make a suggestion, please! Open to all advice! Flames will be devirtualized, thank you very much._

_So Lily Della Robbia is an OC-ish little thing. Odd apparently has five sisters so here's one of them. She's fifteen, so she was five when Odd disappeared. We'll have one more character the next chapter…or maybe the chapter after that, so look for another sibling!_

_And it's late right now, so pardon any mistakes -_o_

_Huggles to Wonton22496 and sora12212 for the great reviews!_

_~Wings~ flying off._


	3. New Face

_ Before we start the chapter, I'd just like to announce the new sibling…Hiroki Ishiyama! Even though that statement was pretty much completely unnecessary, good guesses, guys!_

_ Also, I realized that the virtualization process was mixed up in the last chapter. Its 'scanning' and __**then**__ 'transferring'. My bad, my bad._

_ Also, I forgot a page break there._

_ Also…nevermind._

_ Now let's get the show on the road. Or in my case, the sky!_

_

* * *

_

Lily looked around the lab in amazement; she had never seen so many computers in one room before. Her eyes were drawn to a strange black box crisscrossed with ruler-straight symbols. Two helmets were sitting next to the box, both flashing and beeping sleepily.

"What is this place?" she asked as Jeremy sat down in the computer chair.

"It's the college's lab. At least one of them. This is the one that no one really uses since it's the farthest away from campus, which is why I use it."

William glanced at Jeremy. "So are you going to explain?"

"It's a long story, Lily," said Jeremy.

She plopped herself down into the chair next to him and said, "I'm going to be here all day, and I want to know what really happened to my brother so I won't have to put up with my mom crying over me all the time—"

"No!" cried the two older men. Jeremy straightened his glasses and answered, "Lily, it's very important that you don't tell anyone about this—"he gestured at the helmets and the box "—because we need to get everyone out. Even if we had all the help in the world, it just wouldn't suffice. I can't really explain it, but I need you to promise me and William and everyone who was lost in that incident that you will not breathe a word of this."

Chills began to creep up Lily's spine as she listened to Jeremy's reasons. The way he said them, with that incredibly serious expression and formal speech, she felt as if she was opening the gate to something completely out of this world and never being able to return to her old life ever again, even if whatever happens, ends. _In that case_, she thought to herself, _I'll take a running start._

"I swear that I won't tell anyone any single thing about whatever you are going to tell me," she promised. "Now for the story?"

"Yes," said Jeremy. He hesitated for a moment, clenching and unclenching his fists, and then began his tale.

He began with his arrival at Kadic Academy, the smartest in his class and completely, utterly friendless. He explained the old factory, the very one that exploded ten years ago, and it's supercomputer, scanners, generator—everything. With glistening eyes, he told Lily about his very first encounter with a strange girl who had been sleeping in the computer: Aelita.

He told her about Lyoko, the strange virtual world in which Aelita lived in for as long as her memory allowed her to remember. XANA was the enemy, he had said, an artificial intelligence that was determined to take over the world and enslave the human race. In order to accomplish its evil goals, XANA would activate special towers on Lyoko and thus make contact with the human world, and try to hurt as many people as it can. Aelita, he said, was the only one who could deactivate the towers. Odd, Yumi, and Ulrich (at this part, Jeremy and William held a quick moment of silence) would protect Aelita from XANA's monsters on Lyoko, which were sent to stop them. XANA's symbol, the Eye of XANA, was the only weakness for many of his different monsters.

The three Lyoko warriors had been there with Jeremy since XANA's first attack. They had become his close friends through thick and thin, sticking together no matter what XANA threw at them, for Aelita as well. Eventually, Aelita became devirtualized and arrived on the real world, although still linked to the supercomputer due to a virus that XANA had created. They had learned about Aelita's father, Franz Hopper (another moment of silence), who was the creator of Lyoko and was still in his virtual world. He was the group's next project, and they tried to devirtualize him as well.

Along the way, William had joined the team. On his first mission, however, he was captured by a certain monster that was capable of stealing the memories of its victims. William was thus possessed by XANA for a whole school year but managed to be saved. (Here, William stiffened as well, his face darkening in anger.) Eventually, the group managed to destroy XANA with a program of Jeremy's, but there was not enough energy, even when Franz Hopper gave his life to supply the program. This prompted the Lyoko warriors to give their own energy in order to save the world.

The sun was just beginning to set when Jeremy finished the story, a thin but steady streak of tears streaming down his face. William draped an arm around him as if he was his younger brother, and Lily was…she couldn't explain it. Suspicious. Fascinated. Surprised. Skeptical. Confused. Amazed. She felt all of these, and she couldn't decide which one would be the best feeling to have in this situation. Finally, she chose confusion.

"So it's possible that my brother is trapped in a computer?" she asked, her tone of voice tinted slightly with doubt.

"That's the theory," answered William. He looked at Lily in the eye. "You don't believe us, don't you?"

"Well, no. Yes. I mean, it seems like something right out of sci-fi movie or something. Somehow it feels credible, but who wouldn't be skeptical in my position?" she countered.

"True…"

"How about we show you, then?" Jeremy wiped the tears from his face and gave her the same, strong gaze he had first given William earlier. William shot him a glance in anxiety.

"Do you think she'll be able to handle it?" he asked.

"Show me what? Handle what?"

Jeremy began to clean his glasses. They were slimmer and more rectangular than the large round glasses he had at the academy. He had replaced them on purpose so he wouldn't be looking at exactly the same face he wore during his younger school days.

"She's fifteen, William. I think she can handle it; she's not like Sissy, anyway." William chuckled but the worry never left his expression.

Lily was growing impatient. "Who's Sissy? Handle what?"

"Sissy is one of our old classmates, and she was very…Well anyway, my point is, she's not strong like you. And do you think you'll be able to handle going into Lyoko?" said Jeremy.

"Lyoko? You mean that place you mentioned?"

"Yes. It'll be like going into a video game. You put one of those helmets on, and instead of our whole body being transferred to Lyoko, your consciousness goes instead."

Lily looked dubiously at the helmets. "Well, I guess it won't hurt to try," she decided. She tried to keep her cool, but inside, her heart was thrumming and excitement rushed through her body.

"Alright then. You two, put the helmets on, now," said Jeremy as he turned back to the computer. Lily and William obliged, placing the helmets on 'E' first and 'L' back.

"Scanner: William. Scanner: Lily."

The helmets began to glow and hum, as if excited for the two to go to Lyoko.

"Transfer: William. Transfer: Lily." Their respective icons popped up on the screen, colorful and bright in contrast to the greyed cards of his old friends. Jeremy bit his lip and hit the 'enter' key.

"Virtualization!"

* * *

William and Lily virtualized over the Forest Sector. They both fell to the ground clumsily but recovered quickly.

"Woah! Just…wow!'' exclaimed Lily as she began to inspect herself and the area around her. "But what about my hands?"

Lily wore a pale yellow sleeveless top patterned with purple streaks. A short dark green skirt hugged her slender frame and light green tights were tucked into dark brown boots with tall heels. A small, gold flower, not unlike the clip she wore in the real world, perched on her pale hair. However, large bulbous gloves, indented at the ends, were wrapped around Lily's lower arms and completely covered her hands. Hair-thin seams were visible on these strange accessories. But what were more fascinating were the papery fairy wings on her back.

"Never took you for a fairy," chuckled William as he heaved his blade on his shoulder.

"Never mind the wings," complained Lily. "This is totally _not_ my color scheme, and…my hands!" She held up her arms and jabbed him the gloves. "Is this supposed to happen, William?"

"Relax, Lily, it's just your Lyoko costume," came Jeremy's voice. Lily jumped in surprise but said nothing. There was no need to be surprised anymore, she decided. "And Kankrelats are arriving: there are more of them, now!"

"What are Kankre—"

Six puny little monsters came scuttling towards the two as Jeremy spoke, and William grabbed Lily and took shelter behind a particularly wide tree trunk. As William looked around at the enemy, he noticed something different about the monsters and had a sudden realization.

"Hey Jeremy, you know how the monsters were sent by XANA?" he asked.

"Yes, but…oh, I see where you're getting at! XANA is gone now, but the monsters are still here! That means someone else must be controlling them!" exclaimed Jeremy as he began to type away ferociously at the keyboard back in the real world.

"Yeah, and the target—the eye—of the monsters have some minor differences as well. It looks almost exactly like the original eye, but…different."

"Different how?"

"Um…combine a power button and XANA's symbol. That's pretty much what it looks like."

He suddenly jumped out from behind the tree and caught several lasers in his sword, and then shot the energy back at the monsters. Two of the Kankrelats were eliminated, vanishing on the spot while the others scurried away and reformed. Swearing under his breath, William retreated to the tree.

"Let me try fighting them," suggested Lily, who was growing bored from waiting and taking shelter. "I think these are some sort of weapons." She gestured towards her gloves.

"You're right," answered Jeremy, "they are your weapons. You'll know how to use them instinctually."

"I'll take your word for it, Einstein," said Lily. Jeremy choked at the old nickname that had been given to him by Odd, her older brother. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Jeremy replied, "it's just that that was the nickname that your brother gave me in the past."

A frown appeared on Lily's face, but she ran out into the open anyway. At that moment, the right word exploded from her as if it was hiding since her birth and was waiting for the best time to be spoken.

"Photosynthesis!" she cried, holding out her arms. Immediately, the gloves split into four sections along the seams up to where her wrists would be, the shapes giving the impression of lilies. Two spheres of pale, yellow-white light gathered inside the gloves and then shot out, joining with each other to create a huge explosion. The rest of the monsters were eradicated.

"Wow," breathed William. "That was amazing. You have a great weapon here."

"Thanks," answered Lily. Then, she collapsed and hit the virtual grassy floor of the Forest Sector.

"Lily, what's wrong?" William hurried over to her, who slowly devirtualized.

"It looks like she discovered her special attack, an incredibly strong attack that should only be used in emergencies, and not her regular attack like yours. It took too much energy to pull off, so she got devirtualized. She's alright, though, and I'll bring you back too," Jeremy said, pushing another computer key. Within seconds, William disappeared and stirred again back on Earth. Lily was lying on the floor besides him, fast asleep, and Jeremy held a finger to his lips. The dark-haired man smiled and picked her up, and the two of them walked to the infirmary of the college.

* * *

"Hiroki!"

The bedroom was filled with cardboard boxes, all taped up and ready to be transported. A young man was lying on the floor, propped up by one of those boxes with a Gameboy in his hands. He narrowed his eyes at the flashing screen, and electronic noise effects exploded out of the speakers.

"Hiroki Ishiyama! What on earth do you think you're doing?"

A dark-haired, middle-aged woman wearing a simple yukata stormed into the room. Her face was flushed from anger and she began to speak in rapid Japanese.

"Hiroki, you're moving out today to your new college dorm! I expect that after so many years, you'd gain some sense and responsibility but here you are playing video games as if you can just make a living off of doing that—"

Hiroki, not taking his eyes off the screen, replied in French, "I'm already done packing, Mom. I'm just waiting for the movers to get here since they'll be coming in about thirty minutes. I finished all of my papers and summer school homework. I'm taking a break, so leave me alone."

Mrs. Ishiyama sighed as she left his room. She could remember the days when Hiroki was still just twelve years old, full of energy and laughter, and constantly teasing Yumi about her attraction to one of her friends, Ulrich. A tear sprang up to her eye at the thought of her deceased eldest daughter, along with her other friends who had vanished with her. She could remember that specific day when she received a call from Kadic Academy, and she could remember not being able to process it all. The funeral was held for all four of the missing students. Odd's mother had been crying hysterically, and his and Ulrich's father and parents were trying to comfort her. The Belpois and Dunbars had sat with her and her family while the Dunbar's boy, William, had been trying to comfort Jeremy Belpois, who was hunched up in his seat and shaking quietly. So many people were crying and sobbing, while less familiar people put on a mask of pity for the ones around them.

Hiroki had drastically changed since the funeral. Mrs. Ishiyama had wanted to go back home to Japan, but Hiroki had thrown himself into studying and even received a full scholarship to the college Jeremy Belfois attended. She knew how much he wanted to stay there in France so she decided to not move, although she herself was never the same as well. However, Hiroki was no longer her bouncing baby boy, but a hardened young man who experienced the loss of a loved one at such a young age. _No child_, she thought to herself, _should ever experience a death in the family at his age._ Hiroki was now very studious, something that Mrs. Ishiyama would have been happier with earlier, but he never stayed at school or went out with his friends. His life fell into a certain, monotonous pattern: wake up, go to school, study, sleep. She hoped that he would enjoy college life more than his childhood.

A sharp, clear bell-like noise cut through the air and echoed in the somewhat empty house. Mrs. Ishiyama jumped at the sudden intruding sound, then realized it was the movers at the door. She hurried down the stairs and opened the door to two large men, one who was slightly built and the other with a potbelly. She carefully chose her words in French, trying not to accidentally speak Japanese, and the men headed off to Hiroki's room. A few moments later, they came back down carrying boxes on their shoulders, but Hiroki did not leave until every box was moved out. Then, he came down the stairs, twirling his car keys and shouldering a small knapsack. With a hug and a kiss he shuffled out of the house after the movers, and Mrs. Ishiyama could hear the hum of her son's car engine. Within a few seconds, the roars of the mover's truck and Hiroki's small gray car faded into the distance, and another tear formed in the corner of her right eye.

_Hiroki, please…be careful._

_

* * *

_

_Meh, this could have been longer, but it's late so there shall be more in the next chapter...a lot more. I promise. Maybe. Hopefully._

_To answer any possible lingering questions: no, Hiroki is not emo and is not an addict or anything. He's just depressed, but not suicide-depressed. So he will not kill himself or anything like that. Well, except for monsters._

_And for the record, Dragonfly996 (too lazy to PM, sorry) the new characters aren't really meant as replacements, and I hope you won't see it that way, like Lily being a specific replacement for Odd, William for Ulrich, and Hiroki for Yumi. I wasn't really intending it that way, so please don't think of them as simple replacements. They be sad. :'(_

_As for the one who will deactivate the towers, it will not be Jeremy (although I may stick him on Lyoko one chapter just for the fun of it) but someone else that we will see in the next chapter…Oh, the suspense! _

_So, who is this new mysterious enemy? And just what does that symbol look like? If you'd like to see it, follow the link to my deviantArt account on my profile and check it out! (If anyone knows how to post links on here please enlighten me!) You'll recognize it; it looks like XANA's symbol but, like, crossed with a power button. Yes. That makes total sense. And if you still are too lazy to go check it out, the new enemy's name is there as well. Not very original, but, whatever. Kudos to Kaykat for brainstorming the name with me! _

_Le gasp…more reviewers! You guys all mean so much to me: Kaykat, Wonton22496, sora12212, Dragonfly996, Erik-Silver, and Traveler7 (anonymous). _


	4. Little Brothers

_~Wings~ flying off._

_~Wings~ flying back._

_Yeah, I forgot to do that in the last chapter. Whoops! Hahah…_

_Anyway, I just watched another episode of Code Lyoko, and I really don't know what the order (transfer and scanning) is, so I'll just like, make it up or something. Deal. _

_On with the show!_

_

* * *

_

Deep in the Ice sector, a huge glacier sat in the middle of a large, virtual lake that was deep inside an underground cave, carefully concealed from view. It was well-hidden for a purpose.

Through the thick, misty ice, a smokeless tower stood inside the glacier. And within the tower, a young man lay on a platform bearing the same symbol as the new monsters'. He had spiky white hair tipped with black, which hid his pointed ears, and dark, tanned skin, and his yin-yang-like uniform sported the same emblem—one like XANA's, and yet unlike XANA's.

As soon as Jeremy first reached Lyoko, the young man had stirred, who had been dormant ever since the creation of the virtual world. When XANA had been in action, he had been dimly aware of the many battles that happened between the supercomputer and strangers who had come back to Lyoko every time XANA activated a tower. The whole incident was annoying, and he didn't partake in any fights—after all, he was merely a backup program, in case XANA failed its task.

Which it had. And everything on Lyoko was shut down, including him. When he first awoke from the pulsations unknowingly caused by Jeremy, he knew that that stupid supercomputer had failed. It did not understand the real world and was destroyed in the process. XANA wasn't the only stupid thing he was aware of. His creator was stupid too, making A.I.s and using them only for stepping stones in his grand plan, which was stupid as well. Taking over the world? How cliché can you get? And all this A.I. wanted was a chance at real life. To be able to breathe real air, and see real sites, and eat real food, and walk and talk and move with a real body. He would give up his supernatural powers on Lyoko just to be able to do all those things. But no, his creator forbade it, restricting him. Telling him, through screens in his frozen tower, his only purpose was to destroy any enemies that arrived on Lyoko and he had a whole arsenal of monsters at his disposal.

Well, his creator could go burn in hell. Of course, he didn't tell him that; otherwise, he would risk deprogramming and cease to exist. He wouldn't even be a memory, and the creator could just forget him. The creator even made him a new symbol, similar and different to XANA, the failure. The creator was still bitter about that program. "Damn kids," he would curse, and the A.I. would watch him stomp around his laboratory from his little screen in the tower.

XANA was still a laugh in his mind. Able to put humans into deadly comas with music and neutralize gravity, and yet unable to defeat five or six children. XANA wanted world domination as well. He couldn't understand why controlling the world was so important. What's the use of having so much power? Enslave the humans? Ha! When hell freezes over! The supercomputer couldn't keep control over a mouse, let alone a world!

Yes, all the A.I. wanted was a normal existence, to just breathe and eat and…_live_. But how would he do that? As he thought, the symbol underneath him began to glow white and the ice around the tower cracked and shattered, and an icy path appeared from the tower to the banks of the lake. Power began to flow through him as he stood up and slowly walked to the entrance. How would he be able to go to the real world? A screen opened up behind him with a soft _beep_, and he walked back to see what new message his creator sent him after so long. His ice-blue eyes widened as he read: _You can do anything once you rule the world._

So if he ruled the world, he would able to come into the real world. He read on: _However, there's some fools who are returning to Lyoko once again. They want to stop you so they can have their real world to themselves. They won't let any A.I. in! They are threatening your wish!_

They dare take his opportunity to live for real away! His breath quickened and he narrowed his eyes in anger. His blue pupils began to flash with his new symbol. _As long as you do your duty, taking the world is in your hands. Your abilities are open and available, to fight against them. To fight for your wish. But you must do what I say in order to accomplish your goal._

The message ended there, but he didn't care. To think that humans could be so greedy! He shouldn't be surprised, now that he thought about it, as he thought of his stupid creator. But a plan began to form in his mind. In order to fulfill his wish, he had to fight the threats and take control of the world, which was his creator's original intention. He was being used; he knew that. But for now, it'll be a win-win situation. He'll fight the enemies threatening his desire, which were enemies to his creator. He'll help take over the world. But when that happens, he'll throw away and destroy his creator, and take the world all for himself. It would be brilliant. A smile appeared on his dark face and he ran his fingers through his spiky hair. And as he passed through the entrance of the tower and looked around the Ice sector, his eyes reflections of the frozen wasteland, his first spoken word escaped his lips. His name.

XERO.

* * *

Far off in the Forest sector, the complete opposite of XERO's, another boy stirred in another smokeless tower in another secluded area, covered completely with virtual leaves and surrounded by a thick forest of trees. His dark red hair hung past his olive eyes as he pushed himself up. He knew he had been unconscious for a long time, even longer than XERO, and he knew his older sister was gone as well. He had felt her disappearance from Lyoko several times and was completely baffled. But his sister was all he could remember. He didn't even know if she was his sister, but his broken memory told him so. He was vaguely aware of her presence, as well as a few others later on. But those were strange, foreign. Not part of Lyoko. But they helped his sister deactivate towers that were activated by XANA, the evil supercomputer, so he stayed in his tower. He didn't know why he didn't reveal himself to her; maybe he couldn't. He never tried.

But now her existence was gone. Extinguished. Like she never existed. Gone, like the others. But she was the last to go. But with her disappearance came the disappearance of XANA. Sacrifice. So beautiful and yet so ugly. He hated it. Hated. He wanted his sister.

And then there were new pulsations, bad, evil ones. Just now. They woke him up. And then he heard a name, whispered across sectors and time. XERO. A new threat. Ugly. He hated ugly things. Ugly and bad and evil things. And with that new name, he felt something else. No. More than one thing. One, two, three, four. Four things. Four presences. Four existences. Vague and faint, barely alive. But hanging on, as if they were trying to come back from wherever they came from. Four things. His sister and three other presences. Were they still alive?

His mind was still groggy and messy. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't think full thoughts and sentences. Who could, after being asleep for so many years? Were they years? Were they months, or days, or weeks, or seconds? What did it matter? Maybe it did. But not to him. Not yet.

But was his sister still alive? Yes, she was. Barely. Sleeping, like he had. But not a good sleep. Bad. Like death. And so were the others. One, two, three. Three others. There were three others, who fought to protect her. They helped her through to the activated towers as they fought the monsters, sometimes getting killed. No, they weren't killed, they were devirtualized. Gone. But they came back. For his sister. Sometimes, his sister went with them. But how?

He didn't know exactly what he was. An artificial intelligence? Probably. But he remembered that he was directly related to his sister. Like, by blood. Were they twins? He thought so. Maybe. Younger or older? No. That doesn't matter right now. But his sister used to be confined on Lyoko, the virtual world. He also remembered that. His sister and Lyoko. But then his sister left, for real. She was human. Just stuck on Lyoko. So was he human too? He should be. Just stuck on Lyoko. Forever? No. His sister wasn't, so why him?

Now, before XERO, the ugly thing, and after he woke up, he felt other pulsations. Not bad. But were they good? They seemed good. They felt foreign. Like his sister's friends. Like aliens. But they weren't his sister's friends. One felt the same. But different. Like a sibling. The other he recognized. He had been on Lyoko before. But he had been possessed. And here he was now. He was okay. With the sibling. They didn't do anything. They just killed some monsters and left. Okay. Weird. But okay.

And he heard a voice, like the voice when his sister was alive. No, existed. The owner of the voice tried to come to Lyoko. The first time, he was trapped. He tried again. He came. And then he left. No fighting. No battles. Just here and then not here. Okay. But he heard that voice, after so long. Older. But the same owner. That voice had helped his sister leave. That voice was there when she died. No. She didn't die. But she was gone. For a while. Maybe that voice is trying to find her. With new friends. Two others. Will there be another? So there'll be three. Like before. Him and them. Four. Maybe five. He doesn't know. But maybe that voice will help him. Help him go to the real world. He doesn't know why he wants to go: maybe an instinct? Maybe he was originally from the real world. Like his sister. But he was so hidden. How will he be found?

He sat up, pushing back his dark red hair and tucking it behind his elf-like ears. Stupid move. Hair fell back in his eyes. Whatever. His clothes were similar to his sister's. White. But with dark red. Like his hair. And a dim, dusky green Like his eyes. No ribbons. Similar but different. Boyish. He picked at his shirt and examined his shoes. What. No time. He had to go. He had to go find the others. But be careful of XERO! He felt power surging through him as his mind slowly began to clear. Good. He was beginning to think straight. And outside, the leaves began to fall and vanish, and trees were disappearing and reappearing elsewhere, leaving a clearing on which he could walk on. He began to step towards the entrance. And then he stopped.

What was his name? Hell, what was his _sister's _name? He stopped right in front of the wall, although it really was the exit, or entrance, in disguise. And then it came to him. Just like that, as if it were waiting for him to remember it.

Alphonse. But that was it. And as he walked out of the tower, he remembered another name.

"I'm coming for you, Aelita."

* * *

Lily slowly opened her eyes. Her head was spinning like a top and throbbed painfully. Eventually, the throb faded and the world was beginning to right itself. Jeremy and William were watching her, worried.

"Lily? Are you alright?" asked Jeremy.

"Yeah, my head hurts a bit but I'm okay." She sat herself up and glanced at the clock. 18:30.

"Oh shit! My mom's going to be worried sick about me!" Lily began to get out of the bed, but William stopped her.

"It's okay. Jeremy called her and said you were going to be a little late. So just relax and recover; you used up a lot of your energy on Lyoko."

"Speaking of Lyoko," Lily said, "was that all real? Like, it wasn't just…an illusion or anything?"

"Nah, it wasn't an illusion. You didn't imagine it, although it was just your conscious going to Lyoko. So, did you like it?"

Lily blinked and grinned. "No, I loved it! It felt like a real video game! But the costume was kind of weird. Like those glove things? I don't think I even felt my fingers!"

William chuckled. "You're a little flower fairy, you know?"

"Hey!"

Jeremy watched the two joke around and smiled. He hadn't felt so relaxed since the Incident and here he was, smiling as if it never happened. He supposed that he was so stiff and isolated as sort of a penance for surviving that explosion when his best friends had died…or something. He wasn't even sure they were dead anymore. He didn't want to believe their deaths; just that they were in limbo.

"Well," he said, standing up. William and Lily glanced at the blond young man in confusion. "I think it's time for Miss Lily to go home now. She needs proper rest and food." As Lily began to protest, he added, "And you can visit any time you'd like. In the afternoon, at least, since we all have school."

"I'll take her home, then," offered William. Still pouting, Lily nodded her consent, and the two of them left the infirmary. After they vanished from sight, Jeremy began to leave himself, thanking the nurse and walking back to his dorm. But when he got there, he saw a young Japanese man standing in front of his room with a slip of paper in his hand and a suitcase by his feet. He looked up, startled, but his expression remained impassive, as it had been for the past ten years. Like Jeremy, he had broken inside himself, but in a different way than Jeremy. While Jeremy had simply melted, he himself ended up like a broken bone mended wrong: distorted.

"Hiroki?"

* * *

The drive was long and boring, but easy. That's how he liked it. Endless miles of ugly, gray road were stretched out in front of him for four hours. He longed to reach for his Game Boy and lose himself within it, but if he did, he would die. Like his sister and her friends. Only two survived, and he often had wished that she and Ulrich were the ones to survive. That way, he could go on teasing her about her 'lover' until they actually got married or something. Or something.

Hiroki drummed his slender fingers against the steering wheel when he came to a red light after finally turning away from the highway. Five…four…three…two…one…The traffic light flashed a bright, cheerful green, and he stepped harder on the accelerator, lunging forward and away from the light. Yes, he knew he was depressed. He had been in denial as soon as his sister's death was confirmed, and he never recovered. At least, not yet. He secretly hoped for an excuse to stop mourning for his sister so that he could turn over a new leaf and just…be himself again. But not yet.

He never hated his sister; in fact, he didn't even know why he always teased her like he did ten years ago. Maybe it was just instinct, an instinct of a younger brother to an older sister. But now, of course, he regretted it with all his heart. He never got to tell her that he loved her, as a sibling, and he didn't even know if she really loved _him_, under all that teasing. So now, he was living without that knowledge. And she was dead with _that_ knowledge. And because he had hurt her without ever apologizing to her, he had locked his heart away. Suffering and mourning every single day. He never had true fun for ten years, and he wasn't about to any time soon.

A tear began to form in his eye, and he quickly brushed it away before it could continue its journey down his face. But right after that, another tear rushed down his cheek, and before he could do anything else, a cascade of them spilled over and he ended up sobbing. He quickly parked in an empty parking lot and cried.

It could have been five minutes, or twenty minutes, or even an hour. Hiroki didn't care. His eyes were red and his skin was blotchy, and he was beginning to hiccup. Flipping down the visor, he checked his reflection in the mirror and saw his twelve-year old face under all the tears and redness, his hair short and not long enough to tie back, like now. "Strange," he murmured. Suddenly, he gasped; in the background, he saw the face of his sister, who was still the same age as she died. Hiroki whipped his head around but no one was there. He must be hallucinating. Sighing, he turned back to the mirror, but she was still there, flickering faintly like an old TV screen. He held his breath as she came closer and closer, until her face was right by his own twelve-year old face in the mirror. Hiroki shut his eyes, tears leaking out from under the lids. "I'm sorry," he murmured under his breath. "I know it was all my fault, and if I didn't—"He opened his eyes again and saw his sister's face right by his twelve-year old face in the mirror. She smiled and kissed his tear-stained cheek. _It's okay, I love you._ He heard a buzz and she flickered again. "No!" he cried. "Please don't go!" Yumi smiled again. _I'm always with you, Hiroki_. And then she flickered out of existence.

Sobs racked his body once more; he didn't know whether to believe his sudden vision. Was it real? Or was it just his imagination that created a manifestation of his sister in his mind? She was dead, and yet he could still feel her kiss on his cheek and hear the words in his ears. So she isn't dead? But how could that be? She was missing for so long! And then, he remembered her friends, the live ones. William. Jeremy. He was sharing a room with Jeremy. He could ask him, then! Talk to him about this. He'll know what to do! His impassive mask cracking, he sped away from the empty lot, on his way to the college.

* * *

"Hiroki?"

Jeremy walked closer to the young Japanese man, who stared at him back. He looked the same, in Jeremy's eyes, but he soon noticed something…off about him. It was not a bad thing, though. In fact, it was as if he was somehow recovering from the Incident, returning to his old self.

"Oh, Jeremy. I'm your new roommate, but I forgot my key…"

Even his tone of voice was different. Hiroki coughed and retied his ponytail.

"Ah, here." Jeremy hurried forward and the door swung open with a click. His room _was_ small, yes, and could not possible fit another person, but there was another door within his room that led to another room. Like a hotel suite. Jeremy never used that room.

"There _is _another door from the hallway to your room, so you don't have to keep coming in through here," Jeremy said, gesturing around the bedroom. It was a carbon copy of Jeremy's own dorm, but flipped.

To Jeremy's amazement, Hiroki gave a small smile. "Thanks."

Then, Hiroki's expression changed to a more serious look. "Jeremy, there's something I need to talk to you about. It's about Yumi."

Jeremy stiffened, but then relaxed. He had to be strong. For her. For them. For Aelita.

"Sure, Hiroki. What do you need?"

Hiroki sat on his bed, looking troubled. "When I was driving here, I was thinking about the Incident, you know? And…" He looked embarrassed. "I started…crying, so I stopped by in a parking lot to calm down. And I opened the visor to see my reflection, but I looked twelve. And then I saw Yumi in the background." Jeremy's eyes widened.

"You saw Yumi? But…" He was stopped by Hiroki. "Let me finish," he said. His eyes were beginning to water.

"I saw her and she came closer to me. And then she smiled and kissed me, on the cheek. And she said that she was always there for me, and that she…she loved me. That it was okay that I teased her and hurt her and said all those things to her." Hiroki began to cry again, and Jeremy instinctively draped an arm around him. But inside, he was thinking.

"I heard her, and I felt her, but I don't know if it was real or not—"

"Hiroki. Was she flickering?"

"What?" he asked. He looked bewildered.

"Well? Was she?"

"Now that you mention it…yeah, she was. Like a TV screen with bad cable. It was weird."

"And her eyes; were they normal? Like, did you see any weird sign in her pupils, flashing?"

"No, she looked normal, and her eyes were, too—"

But Hiroki stopped talking as he watched Jeremy's reaction to his words. A series of expressions flew across his face: surprise, confusion, understanding, happiness. Pure joy. Suddenly, he jumped up and grabbed Hiroki's hands, a grin spreading on his lips. "Hiroki! Do you know what this means? That means that they're all alive! Alive for real! Nothing created that image; it could have been Aelita who helped her send that message to you! They…they…" Jeremy began to cry himself, but this time, they were of happiness.

Of course, Hiroki was completely and utterly confused. "Jeremy, what are you talking about?"

Turning to Hiroki, Jeremy began to explain.

* * *

And like Lily, Hiroki looked incredulous by Jeremy's words.

"Hiroki, you've got to believe me. You have to! I'm not lying at all."

Hiroki raised an eyebrow. "Can you prove it to me, then?"

Jeremy looked at the clock. 19:15. "It's a bit late, but I guess I can." He called William over as well.

A quick walk later, the three men arrived at the computer lab. Hiroki's eyes widened in amazement when he saw the strange box and the helmets.

"So, you two put on those helmets and you'll be there in Lyoko." Jeremy popped the microphone in his ear and sat down on his chair.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" muttered Hiroki as he dubiously examined the beeping helmets. The letter 'E' glowed brilliantly in the front.

"Lily went too, you know. Lily Della Robbia," added William.

"Lily did?"

"Yeah. You scared or what?" teased William.

Hiroki's face flushed and he snapped back, "No, I just don't know whether this is really going to work or not—"

"Chicken!" William sang and placed the helmet over his head. "Chiiiiiicken!"

"Oh, I am _so_ going to kill you there!" Hiroki angrily jammed his own headpiece on his head and Jeremy chuckled. Hiroki was beginning to come back to himself. And Jeremy was slowly coming back to himself as well. He had told William about what Hiroki saw as well, and Yumi's appearance became a flicker of hope for the three of them. Maybe Jeremy was right, and they could really bring the Lyoko warriors back.

He shook his head and began to speak.

"Transfer: William. Transfer: Hiroki."

Two cards appeared on the screen.

"Scanner: William. Scanner: Hiroki."

The helmets began to glow. The 'E' began to fade, while the 'L' began to light up.

"Virtualization!"

* * *

This time, William managed to land on his feet, but Hiroki was not so lucky.

"Oof!" he exclaimed as he hit the ground with a thud.

William shifted his blade to his shoulder and looked down at him. "You alright?" he asked with a grin. Hiroki glared in response and got up.

Hiroki was basically a samurai, like Ulrich, but more traditional like Yumi. He wore a white, torn cloak and a dark grey kimono, tied with a white cloth. Bandages wrapped around his lower arms and legs, and two large shoulder pads were tied down on his shoulders. Two long samurai blades hung at his sides and his shoulder-length hair was tied back.

He looked around him in amazement. Again, they had landed in the Forest sector, and tall, slender trees decorated the thin path on which they stood. But the tranquility didn't last for long.

"Kankrelats!" warned Jeremy. His voice came out of nowhere.

Immediately, seven, tiny, strange monsters darted over to where he and William were standing. Their red lasers were absorbed into William's blade, and he grabbed Hiroki's arm and ran behind a small grove of trees.

"Use your swords," William hissed before running out and swinging his own sword. A slash of dark blue energy flew out from the steel and struck three of the Kankrelats, which all exploded quickly. A stray laser hit William's arm and he yelped in pain.

"Careful!" said Jeremy. "You lost thirty life points, and you only have forty left! That's still more than when you first got here, but one more strike and it's game-over for you!"

William winced and dashed back to the tree, where Hiroki had just run out from. He stared as Hiroki drew his swords.

"Hiiiiiiiyah!" Hiroki cried, and suddenly, he disappeared. He reappeared behind one of the Kankrelats which had strayed far from its group and destroyed it, then vanished and reappeared behind two more. They blew up and Hiroki disappeared again. The remaining Kankrelat appeared to be panicking, turning in circles and aiming its lasers everywhere. And then, Hiroki appeared above the monster and jammed his sword into its 'eye'. A light shone from the puncture mark and it exploded.

William gaped open-mouthed. Hiroki grinned at his dumb-founded expression and at his own new ability.

"Teleportation," he laughed.

"Wow," said Jeremy, "that's pretty impressive, Hiroki! Can you teleport with other people?"

"Let me try." He walked over to William, who recovered quickly. He clapped his hands on the older man's shoulders and closed his eyes. He vanished—but William was still there.

"I guess you can only transport yourself, then," said Jeremy with a hint of disappointment. "That's alright though."

"This is so cool!" exclaimed Hiroki.

"Yeah, well, time to come back, guys," said Jeremy.

"Aww, can't we stay here longer?" asked Hiroki.

"No. It's late, and we've got to get ready for our next classes. Devirtualization."

A few minutes later, Hiroki and the others walked back to the dormitory, talking amiably.

* * *

There. Alphonse watched the two young men destroy XERO's monsters with interest. They were relatively weak, but strong enough to defeat those monsters. They'll get stronger, strong enough to rescue his sister and her friends.

He had been exploring all of the different sectors, trying to pinpoint their location. But he was unsuccessful; wherever they were, they weren't anywhere accessible to him, at least not yet. He was frustrated, but he was still hopeful. He saw with his own green eyes the strangers that could help him, and heard with his own pointed ears the voice that had been there ten years ago. Alphonse was disappointed when they vanished, but he knew they would come again. They would come back to fight more monsters. Suddenly, as he began to hop back to his tower, several red lasers were shot at his feet. He danced back, alarmed, and his slender fingers automatically curled into fists and pressed against his body. Two Kankrelats were aiming at him. Instinctively, he slammed his fists against the ground and a rocky path opened up, snaking towards the two monsters and rising out of the earth, crushing the two in a deadly embrace. Shaking, he drew his hands away from the ground and the upturned rocks faded, leaving a smooth, unmarked floor, as if his attack never happened.

Alphonse turned back to his tower when he heard a low chuckle.

"Impressive."

He whipped around to find another man standing several yards away. He looked older and yet was still young, although in Lyoko, their ages were impossible to guess. Alphonse had never seen this man in his life, but he knew who he was: XERO.

XERO raised his hands and said, "I'm not here to fight you, Alphonse. I just want some answers." His voice was was like poisoned honey.

"What kind of answers?" he replied, his fists returning to his sides.

"I have a certain…goal in mind. Because, see, all I want is to go to the real world and just be real. Not a virtual creature or anything like that. I have feelings, not like some random A.I. So I have to take control of the world so I can go on it, you know?"

Alphonse's eyes narrowed. "No, I don't know."

"Oh, Alphonse, we are the same. You and I. Both man-made creations used as stepping stones for the humans, for their own greedy desires. So we must turn against them, show them we are just as human as they are! We are the same, artificial intelligences, but so much more intelligent than they expected."

Alphonse's gaze softened for a moment, but then he steeled his heart. "No, XERO, we are not the same. We are not the same at all."

With those words, he turned and ran into his tower. There were two types of towers on Lyoko: the towers that can be activated and Alphonse's neutral towers. Alphonse can enter both types of towers, but XERO cannot enter Alphonse's towers. It was a defense mechanism built into the foundation of the towers.

But XERO did not seem angry. In fact, he looked almost pleased. His dark skin wrinkled as he allowed himself a smile, a malicious, evil grin.

"You are denying the truth, Alphonse…but you will soon see the light of my plan."

He stepped backwards and a black portal opened up behind him. It was like a tear in the virtual world, like a mistake. Like a glitch. It swallowed him up and vanished, like it had never been there.

_

* * *

Wow. This has got to be the longest chapter I've ever written. *Checks*. Yep. 5,000+ words! Accomplishment!_

_ So now we see two more characters on Lyoko: XERO, our new antagonist, and Alphonse, our new Lyoko resident. What sorts of adventures will be in store for the gang next? Only the authoress knows, so look forward to it!_

_Yeah, Hiroki seems a bit bipolar here, but he just went through a major epiphany or something, hence the massive personality change. Well, a bit of background info- we all know Hiroki used to be the normal little brother, annoying and whatnot. But then Yumi disappeared, and he sort of buried his true personality as some sort of penance for treating her like he did when she was still around. And now, he realized she is still out there, and that he's forgiven, so his true personality came back. So, he's all better now. He may go back to his 'mask', and he may not. Oh, the suspense. Anyway._

_ Special thanks to Kaykat for all her help…XERO's last line was inspired by her!_

_ To the reviewers: You guys mean the world to me! Kaykat, Wonton22496, Erik-Silver, hi (anonymous), sora12212, Dragonfly996, and Traveler7 (anonymous)!_

_~Wings~ flying off._


	5. Electocution and Exploding Schools

_Hey guys, look who's back~_

_Before you start reading, I just want to clear up a few confusions regarding my story._

_First of all (does this look familiar?), this is essentially an OC story, so I do understand that Lily does not exist in canon CL. And to answer some more questions, XERO and Alphonse technically should not exist. XANA was made by Franz, I know, but he's too nice to make a computer that somehow wants to dominate the world, so hence my scapegoat and his beautiful creation. That and I stepped across time and space and dimensions and black holes to bring them into this story. Okay not really but you know what I mean, right?_

_Riiiiiiiiiiiiight._

_Which brings me to my second point: I am not the most devout CL fan, as in I did not watch every single episode, so this whole story has a few gaping holes. Which is why this fic is pretty AU, I guess. Which is why some of you guys had a lot of questions but it's a little different. And different is fun, right?_

_Riiiiiiiiiiiight._

_Also, XERO and Alphonse are not the same person. And I realize how stupid my tower classification was. I don't even know why I put that in there. A whim? A fantasy? A dream? You decide.  
Anyway, ignore that classification. Let's just say XERO can enter the towers, but he doesn't because he likes to make Alphonse squirm. There we go; at least it makes an iota of sense. I guess._

_And I just want to say why XERO has a face. A beautiful face. Yeah I realized he was kind of Mary Sue but hey, he's a computer and he's on a virtual world and you've got to admit, they all look pretty cute on Lyoko (namely the boys, especially William :3)._

_And let's just say that Jeremy is so genius, his little computer lab is pretty similar to the actual lab, and can do the return trips and all that fun stuff. But but but. Oh buts. I love buts. They're so…suspenseful. Ew not like butT butts what are you thinking you perv?_

_Anyway. _

_So, I'll do my best to make William and Jeremy and Hiroki (and the rest of the team if/when they come back) more normal and Lily and Alphonse and XERO more realistic._

_Sank ye._

_(PS: Lily went to the college on a Saturday, and got there by train, since in France you can pretty much go anywhere using trains and/or buses. Hooray for public transportation!  
PPS: Holy CRAP I did not realize that I misspelled Jeremy's last name. Belpois, not Belfois. Gawd I'm an idiot. Sorry sorry sorry!)_

* * *

XERO sat cross-legged on the circular floor of his tower; a rectangular, transparent screen stretched out in front of him, and a smaller, second screen watched on, featuring a man's sinister silhouette. His fingers flew over the screen in front of him, tiny glowing dots flashing in his digits' paths. Several squares of illegible symbols popped up and vanished under his hands. The red glow of the screens only made his complexion and red eyes look even more ominous.

Suddenly, from the image of the slowly revolving Earth he kept in the far corner of his screen, a thin, crooked line made its way to the middle of the monitor. Another square formed and a picture of a large school appeared, and several more boxes featuring a handful of humans popped up next to the school.

"Is this them?" murmured XERO, tapping the pictures.

"Yes. These…these are the damn brats who messed up my operation." The deep, nasally voice made XERO cringe with annoyance and a hint of disgust. _At least he didn't show is ugly face_, he thought to himself, glancing at the silhouette which was now shaking its fist.

"And this is their school. Or rather, their meeting place," XERO said, mainly to himself. Ignoring his maker's steady stream of rants about 'those meddling kids', he zoomed in on the buildings and began to explore the campus. He drummed his fingers against the image and several more appeared, showing different insides of the college. Zooming in on the generator room, he saw numerous pipes and cables littering the dingy walls. He snickered to himself and began to plan.

* * *

_!_

A large cloud of students exited the building for the lunch break, diffusing in the courtyard. Many chose to eat at home and left the campus. Lily made her way through the crowd and sat under her favorite tree, pulling out a brown paper bag. As she bit into her sandwich, she thought about Lyoko, remembering every single remarkable detail about the virtual world and fervently wishing she could go back there as soon as she can.

"Hey Lily!" Another young girl sprinted across the grass, her short dark hair fluttering around her face.

"Hi, Nathalie," Lily answered, "weren't you going to go eat at home today?"

She shook her head, her hair flying once more. "I'd rather eat with you than with my nasty brothers!"

Lily laughed and continued to eat. As Nathalie talked excitedly at seemingly impossible speeds, Lily let herself relax and forget about Lyoko, and nodded, giggled, and cringed in all the right places in Nathalie's stories. For the first half-hour the two girls continued in this way, until a large _CRACK_! echoed throughout the entire campus. The lights of the school flickered and died.

"Look, the power's out! Maybe they'll cancel school!" exclaimed Nathalie.

Lily nodded absentmindedly and gazed up at the building. _But why would there be a power outage when there's not even a storm_, she thought to herself, gazing up at the cloudless blue sky. Suddenly, she heard William's voice in her mind as she remembered his parting words before she had gone home.

_**Flashback**_

_"Lily, are you sure you're alright?" asked William, worry still evident in his face._

_ Lily sighed. "William, I'm fine. I'm just a little tired, that's all."_

_ She shut the car door and began walking to her front porch when William suddenly called from his seat, "Lily!"_

_ She turned around, her key already in the keyhole and her hand on the knob. _

_ "Yeah?"_

_ "I know we didn't encounter anything like XANA, but the symbols on the monsters were different than XANA's. XANA used to attack us a lot in the past, so I just want to warn you: if anything strange, anything that shouldn't really happen happens, call either me or the others and come to the lab as soon as you can. Alright?"_

_ The serious look on William's face made Lily realize he wasn't joking._

_ "Alright, I promise."_

_**End Flashback**_

_This definitely qualifies as 'strange', right?_ she asked herself. As she remembered William's warning, the school had begun to crackle and electrical lights began to snake around the buildings and climbed the telephone wires. Screams of terror and confusion filled the air and both children and teachers tried to run off the premises. Suddenly, the electrical current attacked the fence in front of the school, and everyone was trapped. Several people ran headlong into the fence; immediately they were electrocuted and fell to the ground. Nathalie screamed and collapsed.

Lily managed to catch her and set her carefully to the ground. "I'm sorry, Nat," she whispered. She looked around the courtyard. _How the hell am I supposed to get out?_ Looking closer at the fence, she realized it didn't completely surround the building. It ended among the closely situated trees that hugged the school. She ran along the fence, keeping a safe distance away from it.

She then noticed a narrow opening between the metal fence and the building, but flinched when she saw electricity jumping between the two, forming a crackling barrier. Picking up a small branch on the ground, she tossed it into the cavity and flinched when it burst into flame and disintegrated. _If I tried getting through there, I'd be a goner_, she thought. Sighing, she flipped open her phone and dialed Jeremy's number.

"Hello—"

"Jeremy? Jeremy, it's me, Lily! We have a pretty _shocking_ problem over here…"

* * *

**JEREMY'S POV**

The classes were boring, as usual. Jeremy drummed his fingers on the black surface of the lab table as the professor continued to drone on in his monotone voice. Besides him, William turned his head in his arms and stared blankly at the chalkboard, much more uninterested than Jeremy. Of course, they were bored for different reasons.

Jeremy glanced at the clock. Class was almost over, and his impatience grew until his phone began to vibrate wildly in his pocket. The buzzing noise filled the air, and the teacher and all the other students flashed dirty looks in his direction as he hurried out of the classroom. William tried slipping out behind him.

"Mr. Dunbar, will you remain in your seat—"

But he vanished from the doorway, leaving the professor with his wrinkled mouth still hanging wide open.

Normally, Jeremy would have ignored his phone and apologize to the professor, flushing as his fellow students snickered around him. But as soon as he saw that it was Lily making the call, he tore out of the classroom, knowing that William would follow close behind.

He barely answered with the typical 'hello' when he was interrupted by Lily's calm but somewhat frantic voice.

"Hello—"

"Jeremy? Jeremy, it's me, Lily! We have a pretty _shocking_ problem over here…"

Jeremy then heard about seven seconds more of her quick explanation before the line went dead. His heart sank as her voice was cut off and replaced by several high-pitched beeps. He slammed his thumb on the power button in frustration as William nudged him.

"Jeremy, who was that? What's wrong?"

"I don't know who it is, but I think I know what did it! Come on, we need to get Hiroki; he doesn't have classes at this moment." Jeremy began to dial Hiroki's number as well.

"Hey, can you tell me what's going on? And what do you mean 'you don't know who it is but you know what did it?' Who did what?"

After a quick conversation Jeremy hung up once more.

"Remember that new symbol on the monsters? That's probably the sign of another enemy like XANA; it might be XANA's successor or something like that. But I don't know what it is exactly. And Lily's school was attacked by whatever it is, and she can't get out. We have to hurry; her life's in danger!"

No more questions were needed. The two men took off running for the computer lab.

* * *

The arrival on Lyoko was quick and this time, Hiroki managed to land on his feet as well. The barren Desert Sector was a welcoming sight to William. He preferred this to the stuffy classroom he had suffered moments before. His period of relaxation was cut short, however, when Hiroki jabbed William with his elbow and snapped, "Wake up and move it!"

The two of them took off running, flying over the landscape and listening to Jeremy's directions. As they approached the tower, an issue came to William and hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Jeremy…"

"Yes, William?"

"You wanna tell us how the hell we're going to deactivate the tower?"

Jeremy jumped as he realized what William was talking about. As he watched William's and Hiroki's icons slow to a stop in front of the blinking tower, he slapped his palm to his forehead and groaned. But while he racked his brains, trying to find a way to solve this problem, he didn't notice a significant amount of monsters heading their way. He was jolted back to reality at the sound of their yells.

"JEREMY! WAKE UP AND TELL US WHEN THESE THINGS ARE COMING!" hollered Hiroki in fury as he jumped back to avoid a bright red laser. Three Bloks and four Kankralats darted around them and fired at the two Lyoko warriors. Several more lasers vanished into William's blade and he reflected them back as orbs of dark blue energy. Two Kankralats shattered and disappeared into oblivion but William groaned in pain as the other two Kankralats retaliated. To make matters worse, another small army of Lyoko monsters, two Bloks and three Kankralats, ran towards the fighting.

"Shit!" muttered Jeremy as his fingers flew over the keyboard and filled the air with the familiar clicking noise of the keys. Boxes of unintelligible data popped up and flashed a glowing red. "Dammit, why am I such an idiot?"

The battlefield was flat and wide; any object that could have been used as a shield was far away from where the warriors were fighting, and the tower was guarded by a spitting Blok. The situation was turning for the worse. The monsters seemed smarter and stronger this time, not to mention that they clearly outnumbered the two men. They dodged Hiroki's twin blades and William's spheres of energy, returning the attacks with their own deadly lasers. Reflexes kept the two alive, but resisting was almost useless, and hopes were falling until…

The earth began to shake intensely, and the firing ceased as both man and monster lost their footing in the quake. A strange, unfamiliar voice rang out:

"Get behind the tower, NOW!"

Without any second thought, William dashed for the tower while Hiroki remembered his ability and vanished, joining the older man behind the tower. As they peered out, they gasped and watched a fissure open up in the ground, swallowing the monsters and closing up after them. No trace was left of the giant crack in the ground. Jeremy watched along, speechless.

William and Hiroki slipped around the tower and began to search for their savior. But as they walked out, a figure rushed past them and vanished into the tower.

"Um, Jeremy?" called Hiroki, "what the hell just happened?"

Jeremy was still gaping at the strange icon. "I honestly don't know, but it looks like its on our side. But I'll bring you back." He watched the screen, wondering if the strange person was indeed on their side, and if the red light would turn white, like in the old days. Suddenly, at that moment, the glow faded. His finger quickly slammed on the enter key and he spoke the familiar words, "Return to the past now." But as he did so, another box appeared on the screen, and he had a split-second glimpse of a face peering out at him, and he gasped before being enveloped in a bright white light.

He saw Aelita's eyes.

* * *

___!_

Lily gaped in amazement as she saw the same scene of students pouring out of the school for the lunch break. It seemed that only minutes ago, she helplessly watched the electricity venturing further and further away from the building and the fence and closer to the students huddled in the middle of the courtyard. Bodies piled up around them; no one knew if they were dead or unconscious, and no one was willing to check. Nathalie had clutched Lily in terror. Her eyes wide open with fear, and for once she was speechless.

But now, Lily was just biting into her sandwich, thinking about Lyoko, when she saw Nathalie charging towards where she was sitting.

"Hey Lily!"

"Hi, Nathalie," she answered, "weren't you going to go eat at home today?"

Nathalie shook her head, her hair flying once more. "I'd rather eat with you than with my nasty brothers!"

Lily just laughed again, glad to see her best friend in her talkative state as she began chattering away at high speed. Reclining into the large tree behind her, she smiled and listened to what she could decipher of her friend's stories.

"…And that's what happened," Lily finished as she stirred more sugar into her tea at the café, sitting with the rest of the gang.

"Wow, that sounded like hell," William remarked, sipping his coffee. Hiroki shook his head in disbelief, but Jeremy was still staring into space, absentmindedly dropping sugar cubes into his own drink.

Hiroki glanced at Jeremy. "Hey, Jeremy! Wake up! It's over, you know!" But the blond-haired man didn't stir until Hiroki poked him in the ribs.

"O-oh, our drinks are here? Wow, their service is pretty fast, isn't it? We should come here more often—GAH!" He had taken a sip of his drink and promptly spat it out on the ground.

Hiroki raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's what you get when you blank out and drop fourteen sugar cubes into your orange juice."

"Jeremy, are you alright?" asked William worriedly as Jeremy coughed and wiped his mouth. Lily waved away the odd stares the other customers were giving the gang.

"I'm alright," Jeremy said. "But before the return trip, I saw something on the screen and it just startled me really badly…"

* * *

_OH THE SUSPENSE. _

_Sorry to leave you guys hanging, but its late and I pretty much missed my deadline. I'M SO SORRY but at least I got there. Somehow. Well technically I finished the actual story right before midnight but_

_Okay I'm making excuses. Anyway._

_So this is my first attempt at describing an attack. Yes the smokey thing was there screwing up the cables and stuff (that was XERO I know). I tried to vary the monsters and increase the number so it would be a little more interesting, for those of you who wanted a better fight scene._

_Sorry that it's so short but it's late and my sister is making me go to sleep ASAP so I had to end this early. Believe me, if I had some more time this chapter would have been much longer…but that'll all have to wait till the next chapter. So stay tuned!_

_And yes I know my writing is shitty right now but I'm working on it! Hopefully the next chapter will be much better. Writing the right personality for all of the actual CL cast is difficult but I'm trying my hardest! And sorry again if my writing did not meet your expectations. Feel free to review. Constructive criticism is appreciated, flames are not. _

_Thank you all so much for sticking with me! AeonFrodo, Dragonfly996, Kaykat, Skamikaze, Wonton22496, Herr E, Erik-Silver, Cha-Cha-Cheesecake, Good Ole Uncle D, Owla, robin'schick, Amy, bookworm600, and Kagirinai Higure! I love you all!_

_~Wings~ flying off._


	6. Eyes of the Past

_"Jeremy, are you alright?" asked William worriedly as Jeremy coughed and wiped his mouth. Lily waved away the odd stares the other customers were giving the gang._

_"I'm alright," Jeremy said. "But before the return trip, I saw something on the screen and it just startled me really badly…"_

"Something scared you?" William asked. "Was it XANA?"

"No…" Jeremy let his voice trail off. The image was still burned in his mind. Those eyes, jade-green and intelligent, were so much like Aelita's ten years ago, from the first day he had discovered her in the factory computer. Could Aelita still be alive? Or is it someone new, someone else who had been sleeping in Lyoko? And now that he thought of them more, the eyes he had seen were somewhat different. Somehow, although he couldn't put a finger on it…

"Oi! Jeremy! Are you in there?"

With a small gasp he jumped at the sound of Hiroki's loud voice. The Japanese man gave him a black look and raised an eyebrow.

Jeremy looked around him and found Lily and William were staring at him too.

"Come on, Jeremy. It's been a long day, and the professor is going to have our heads if we don't hand in our labs for tomorrow," William said gently, going instantly into mother mode. He stood up, motioning the waiter over to them and handing him several bills. The waiter counted the bills, returned a few, and bowed them formally from the café.

Hiroki offered to take Lily home, and Jeremy and William waved as the small car rattled away on the cobblestones.

* * *

Everything was dark, the kind of darkness that can only be seen through closed eyes. Jeremy was perplexed. He was sure his eyes were closed. It was barely nine o'clock when he finished his report and left William wringing his hands over his own. The blue-haired man was sitting on the floor with his laptop on his knees when Jeremy climbed into bed, wanting to escape reality.

So he lay there, seeing darkness and still being confused. For in front of him hung a set of closed eyes that he was somehow able to distinguish from underneath his eyelids. He stared at them, trying to comprehend this, as he was positive he was still conscious. Well actually, he wasn't even sure anymore.

And suddenly, they opened. They were the same green eyes from the computer screen earlier today. They stared at him like they were trying to tell him something, something so important and obvious that even Odd could have understood. But what kept Jeremy from understanding was the fact that they were not the same as _hers_, and that somehow, he knew that they knew something about her and the rest of them. And yet, they still screamed at him, _why can't you see what's right under your nose? Why can't you understand what we're trying to say? How can you, you of all people, not know our message?"_

"I don't know! I don't know! Who are you?" he screamed at them. "What is wrong with you? Everything about you is all wrong! You're not _her_, what have you done with her? With all of them?"

"Jeremy! Calm down! Wake up!"

He sat straight up and snapped open his eyes. Cold sweat ran down his neck and he was gasping for breath. His chest heaved as he hungrily gulped back the air lost from his nonsensical screaming.

Shakily, Jeremy reached for his glasses and placed them over the bridge of his nose. 3:45 AM glowed neon green from his digital clock.

William's blurred face focused with the help of his lenses, and he saw anxiety, so much like the worry he had engraved on his face for years after the incident. Nostalgia flashed briefly through him.

"Are you alright?" William said more quietly, removing his hands from Jeremy's shoulders. Dark circles under his eyes seemed darker from the shadow casted by the light behind him. The laptop sat on the ground, its screen bent almost all the way back.

Jeremy massaged his temples. "Yeah…it's just this dream I had, I guess. I don't even really remember it anymore." The eyes' ominous inquisitions were fading away as he spoke.

"Was it about what bothered you yesterday?"

"I think so..."

"What happened? Tell me, Jeremy," said William, crossing his legs on the messy bed.

Jeremy sighed and began to recount what he had seen. "After the tower was deactivated and I saw that weird icon, I was pressing the return button just as I saw this window open up, and there was a face that appeared for a split second before we rewound, but the thing is, William, I saw _her_ eyes. Or at least something like them."

William gaped. "You mean you saw Aelita?"

"Now that I think about it, I don't think so," Jeremy replied. "Like I said, they looked the same, but something about them was different."

"And this happened after the tower was deactivated." It was not a question.

"That's right."

"Speaking of strangers, when we were fighting the monsters, we were losing terribly but right when they were going to attack all at once, someone yelled to us to go and hide. And then the ground opened up, or something, and all the enemies fell in the crevice. I didn't think about who that was, but do you think your eyes are connected to this?"

"You heard a strange person and he-or she- saved you?"

"I'm pretty sure it was a male voice. Young, but male."

"Hmm…" Jeremy muttered, dropping his chin in his hand. He scratched his head with one finger and tried to wrap his mind around this, but fatigue began to muddle his brain and instead, he started nodding off.

Despite this whole episode, William couldn't help but chuckle as Jeremy's eyes drooped and his head slipped out of his palm, only to be jerked back on again.

"Go to sleep first, Jeremy. We can figure this all out in the morning. Hiroki heard this kid too so maybe he can say something about it."

"Alright…" Jeremy said, and sluggishly dropping his glasses on the dresser, he drifted off, this time undisturbed by nightmares.

* * *

"I heard it too. He said to get behind the tower so I did, but I never saw who it was."

Hiroki deftly rolled his pencil in his long fingers, slumping at his seat. They came early to class, so the lecture room was empty.

"That's strange," remarked Jeremy. "Aelita had been the only one in Lyoko when we found the factory that first time."

"So who was this Aelita? Some kind of program or what?" Hiroki asked.

"No, Aelita was—is human." He refused to think of her as gone, now that there was a possibility, no matter how slim it was, that she and everyone else were alive. "Long story short, she was placed in Lyoko to escape some people who were trying to use the supercomputer for their own selfish reasons. She and her father were trapped in there when he turned the computer off, and it would have stayed that way too if I hadn't come and turned it on."

Hiroki placed the pencil on the table and looked out the window. It was sunny outside, with a cloudless blue sky and flame-colored trees dotted all over the campus. "Do you think that maybe someone's behind all this?"

"Huh?" said Jeremy and William in unison.

"I mean, think about it," he said. "From what I know now, XANA was a supercomputer that was more intelligent than Franz had intended. If Franz was such an amazing programmer, he would have known better than to give the computer free range. And if he was secretive about this, no one would have heard about this computer, which in turn would lead to no chase and no need to hide inside a virtual world."

"So you're saying…" William said drowsily.

"Franz might have hid something from everyone," Hiroki finished. "Someone might have conspired with Franz in making that supercomputer, but with darker intentions if he handed the computer and his colleague to the guys who chased him and Aelita."

Jeremy was silent. _Hiroki is really intelligent_, he thought to himself. _To have created a hypothesis already in the short time we introduced Lyoko and everything to him…he must want his sister back desperately, too._ He looked up at Hiroki and tried to read his face, without success.

At that moment, an unseen signal was given and students began to file into the lecture room. The silence was broken and a low murmur of voices grew as seats were taken and the professor, a large, middle-aged woman, rapped her desk sharply with her knuckles.

"If everyone would settle down and take their seats, we'll begin," she barked. She raked the crowd with hawk-like eyes and the silence returned almost immediately. She glared at the last student who ran in at the last minute, gasping for breath and collapsing in a chair near the exit.

Jeremy inwardly groaned and muttered to Hiroki and William, "When classes are over, meet up at the lab."

Hiroki nodded. "I'll call Lily, then." He turned to face the board while William jerked awake, having dozed off, and shook his head in agreement.

"William, are you alright? You look terrible."

"I'm okay, just a little tired from working…"

"Maybe you should just stay in your dorm and rest today"

"I'll be fine, really. I'll just sleep during classes and—"

"Who's class will you be sleeping through, Mr. Dunbar?"

William flinched as the professor stomped up to him and narrowed her eyes.

"N-n-not yours, Professor! I swear!"

Jeremy couldn't help but join the class in laughter as she hit him the way she hit her desk. _I guess he'll be alright, then_, he thought to himself as William begged for forgiveness.

* * *

Lily's phone buzzed just as she exited the school building. Surprised, she flipped it open and answered.

"Hello?"

Nathalie tilted her head, trying to listen to the caller.

"Lily? It's Hiroki."

"Oh, hi Hiroki. Something the matter?" she asked, trying to keep her voice calm for fear of raising suspicions from her friend.

"Hiroki? Who's Hiroki? He sounds older," Nathalie whispered, tugging at her arm.

"Nathalie, get off," Lily hissed. She shook her off and focused on the phone. Nathalie left in a huff, annoyed at her actions.

"Nothing, actually," Hiroki answered. "But something happened last time when you were stuck at school, and we're going to investigate today. William's dead tired since he was working on something last night so I need help to keep him awake, too."

Lily's eyes glinted. "So I can hit him if he falls asleep?"

Hiroki chuckled. "Go for it. See you at the lab."

"See you." The phone beeped as she ended the call and snapped it shut. Behind her, Nathalie snuck up on her, jumping on her back and causing Lily to stifle a shriek.

"Nathalie, what the hell are you doing?"

"Hey, who's Hiroki, who's Hiroki? Is he your—" Nathalie gasped in mock surprise—"_boyfriend?_"

Lily stared. "What? No! What are you saying, Nat?"

"I'm _saying_," Nathalie said, drawing closer, "that you just got a call from a Japanese kid, probably fresh in college, while you're in _high school_, and you sound pretty…close to him. You know?"

"No, I don't know. And he's the brother of a friend of my brother, so I'm friends with him, too. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to leave." She shouldered her bag and walked away, shaking her head at her friend's words.

Nathalie watched her go. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and snickered.

"Lily in love…"

* * *

"Sorry for being late, guys," Lily said, panting for breath and tossing her bag on a table.

"It's alright," Jeremy said. He closed his notebook and folded his hands on top of it. "Since you were trapped at school the other day, Lily, you didn't see or hear what we had here."

"What?"

"Well, remember when we told you about the towers in Lyoko that can cause all this?" Jeremy said.

"Yeah. They were activated by… XARA?"

"XANA," William slurred. Unable to sleep at all during his classes, he had been dozing on the table when she arrived.

"Okay, XANA, and that girl, Aelita, was linked to the supercomputer and was the only one who could deactivate it. Right?" Lily finished.

"Is…" Jeremy muttered.

"What was that?" Lily asked.

"Oh, nothing," he said quickly. "Anyway, you're right—"

"Wait, then who deactivated the tower yesterday?" she said. "I thought Aelita was…you know…"

"She's not," Jeremy said firmly, "and we don't know. The only clues, though, is that William and Hiroki heard an unfamiliar voice that protected them, and before the return, I thought I saw Aelita on the computer screen. But it wasn't her, since they said the voice was male and the eyes I had seen were different from Aelita's."

"So…it was a ghost?" Lily blurted out. She immediately blushed at her ridiculous outburst and ducked her head. Hiroki smirked.

"Afraid of ghosts?" he teased.

"N-n-no! W-why would I? They d-don't exist, a-a-anyway," she stuttered, trying to hide the shock in her face.

Hiroki shone his Gameboy light under his chin and began to moan. "Woooooh, Lily, I'm coming for youuuuu…"

"Wah!" Lily cried, and began batting Hiroki away. "Don't do that!"

"Wooooh…."

"Guys, stop fooling around!" Jeremy snapped. He glared at the younger kids as they sheepishly returned to their seats. William raised an eyebrow under his arms.

"At any rate, we need to find out who this person is and whether he's on our side or not, alright? Put on your helmets." The three warriors obliged, William more slowly.

"William, you sure you're okay for this? You don't have to go," Jeremy said.

"I told you, I'll be fine…" The helmet slipped over his sunken eyes as he slumped back in his seat.

Jeremy stared at him for a moment, then turned to his computer and began logging everyone in. He pondered Hiroki's behavior. _I guess he's recovering, now that we have a lead_, he thought. He remembered Hiroki at the funerals in the past. He had seen him standing in front of Yumi's grave, gazing blankly at the empty coffin. Ever since, he pushed everyone away and maintained impassiveness till his friends gave up on him and his parents considered going back to Japan, and kept it even after. But now, he was allowing himself to open up again. _I guess Lyoko really is the best thing that happened to all of us. It brought me my closest friends, and it's healing broken hearts. Thank you, Franz._ He stopped typing for a moment in respect for the one who had created the link between all of his friends. He refused to think of another sinister character involved with the creation of the virtual world.

"Jeremy?" Hiroki asked, turning in his seat. They were still not in Lyoko.

"Ah—sorry, I'll get you guys in now. And watch over William, will you? He's been up all night."

"Yeah, I know. No problem; Lily and I will take care of him." He turned back.

"Scanner: Hiroki, William, Lily."

The helmets began to glow.

"Transfer: Hiroki, William, Lily."

Lights flashed and soft beeps and bumps echoed in the empty lab. Jeremy pushed a key, his face lit up by the computer screen.

"Virtualization!"

_A/N:_

_Sorry to disappoint, but I am ALIVE!_

_Woot woot._

_It's been four months since I last updated. Oh boy, lots to do. And it's dusty in here, to boot. *cough*_

_I'm sorry for being on such a long unannounced hiatus. A lot has been going on in my personal life (as is with many people, I know), and I had lost confidence in my writing for the longest time. _

_And now I'm back on, writing like there's no tomorrow. Good or bad? You decide._

_I am planning on developing my OCs and original CL characters more, since they are five years in the future. No, not a typo—five years. I've decided that twenty-five to twenty-six is too old for college, so I'm dumbing down to around nineteen to twenty. As for Hiroki (he'd be around sixteen or seventeen)—well, let's just say I have a friend in college at that age too, so it's not impossible. Lily will stay fifteen, so she's just a year or so younger than Hiroki. At least I got rid of that huge age gap; it's been bothering me._

_*Sob* I will now have to go back and change my old chapters. *Sob sob*_

_But if you prefer my original set up, as in the ten year thing and everything, let me know. _

_I'd also like to say that this story is in the future, so obviously things have changed. Just a reminder, this is not entirely canon, so I apologize to those who prefer canon to AU. _

_Please please please don't kill me._

_Anyway, thanks for reading, and special thanks to my beloved reviewers: Spyrofan777, AeonFrodo, Erik-Silver, Alice (anonymous), Tigirl (anonymous), Cha-Cha-Cheesecake, this has been canceled, Traveler7 (anonymous), bookworm600, and Knights of Cydonian Starlight! You're all my inspiration to keep going!_

_Once again, many many apologies, please don't kill me, and as compensation for the long wait, I'll attempt to have two chapters done by Christmas! One, at least… __

_ki'llshutupnow_

_~Wings~ flying off._


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